This invention is concerned with a lubricant composition that contains a noncorrosive antiwear agent and new compositions of matter which have utility as antiwear agents.
The performance of lubricant compositions such as mineral oil based and synthetic oil based lubricating oils and greases may be greatly enhanced by the inclusion therein of additives such as antiwear, anticorrosion, and antioxidant agents. For example, it is well known to use benzotriazole and tolyltriazole as antiwear additives for lubricating oils.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,969,237 there are discussed efforts that have been made to employ benzotriazole in gear oils as a copper corrosion inhibitor. In such applications, it has been found that because of the very limited solubility of benzotriazole in mineral base oils, dissolution of the benzotriazole can only be carried out to a very small extent and only if the benzotriazole is first dissolved in a suitable solvent. In instances where relatively higher concentrations are required, such increased concentration of the benzotriazole in the hydrocarbon medium, is not feasible. The prior art has suggested several methods by which the solubility of benzotriazole can be enhanced. These methods, for the most part, comprise either alkylating the aromatic nucleus of the benzotriazole or incorporating another functional group in this nucleus. Each of these methods, although feasible, was accomplished only with great difficulty and was associated with low yields.